{"id":20551,"date":"2013-08-19T13:04:53","date_gmt":"2013-08-19T17:04:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/?p=20551"},"modified":"2023-03-17T14:55:35","modified_gmt":"2023-03-17T18:55:35","slug":"a-showcase-of-intelligent-logos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/2013\/a-showcase-of-intelligent-logos\/","title":{"rendered":"A Showcase of Intelligent Logos"},"content":{"rendered":"

Designing a logo is rarely as simple and straight-forward as it appears. The best logos add a bit of personality and style, and helps to reflect the identity of the brand. Logos don\u2019t always have to be uptight and corporate either \u2013 think of Amazon\u2019s slightly playful logo. Some of my favourite logos appear \u2013 at first \u2013 to be quite simple and minimalist, but have a hidden extra quality to them. Using Amazon\u2019s famous example, on the surface, it\u2019s their brand name with a cheeky smile underneath.<\/p>\n

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But look closer, and you\u2019ll notice that the smile also forms an arrow between the A and the Z(implying that Amazon stock everything from A to Z).<\/p>\n

Clever, intelligent logos aren\u2019t all that common, in part because they\u2019re so difficult to create. That\u2019s why \u2013 if you\u2019re able to add a hidden message to your logo \u2013 it can be remarkably rewarding. I\u2019ve written this post to help show off some of my favourite designs \u2013 hopefully this will inspire you to think about adding some meaning to designs that you create in the future. If you know of any more, I\u2019d love to hear about them in the comments!<\/p>\n

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The logo for Seriously Open<\/a>, a podcast about coding, combines curly brackets with a microphone.<\/p>\n

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Magic Coffee\u2019s logo<\/a> combines a coffee cup with a magician\u2019s top hat.<\/p>\n

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Mounthat Guardian\u2019s logo<\/a> could either be mountain tops, or a smart hat and brim, depending on which way you look at it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hidden Planet<\/a> hides the I, but keeps the tittle \u2013 suggesting the planet is drifting above the logo.<\/p>\n

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Simplion<\/a> is a cloud hosting company \u2013 their logo combines clouds with technology in the form of pixelated rain.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The logo for Twins cleverly transforms the N into a 2, without affecting readability.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The logo for Timothy James<\/a> \u2013 a musician \u2013 hides a musical note in the monogram, using the negative space.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The Museum of London logo uses colour to help illustrate how London has expanded over the years.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

While not a real company, the logo for Elevator came from a personal designer\u2019s typography project. The V and A reference the up and down arrows found in elevators.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ezypak<\/a> have used a mark that forms both the E for their brand name, and doubles up as a box, highlighting how they manufacture packaging supplies.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The logo for 5 Locks<\/a> is incredibly simple, but includes two hidden features. The first is the 5 on it\u2019s side, to form the L and O. The second is the hidden keyhole in the O that\u2019s formed using the resulting negative space.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This concept logo for Hidden Home Inspections<\/a> has a hidden home icon, tucked away between the E and N.<\/p>\n

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This design for Smart Repair<\/a> merges a lightbulb \u2013 synonomous with the word \u201csmart\u201d \u2013 and a wrench which forms the bulb filament, to highlight the word \u201crepair\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This is a concept logo for a fictional company called Doctor<\/a>, where the O and the C have been linked to form a stethoscope.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This logo was a concept for a cyber security company<\/a>. Personally, I think the pairing of a fingerprint and a shield works perfectly, and forms a clean, beautiful and simple design too.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The logo for Double Vision<\/a> is a playful take on the old red and green 3D glasses, and works well for a film studios company with a bit of personality.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The logo for Hidden You<\/a> seems simple enough, until younotice the little hidden character between the E and N.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

One of my favourite designs, Inequality Records<\/a> uses an equals size where the bars are of very slightly differing lengths.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Idealabs<\/a> combines their two brand words \u201cidea\u201d and \u201clabs\u201d by using a mark that both resembles a lightbulb and a beaker.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Above is a beautiful example of a very subtly done logo design \u2013 the back of the chair forms the text SIT<\/a>, by slightly warping the first bar.<\/p>\n

Have you found any examples of creative, inspiring and intelligent logos that you think deserve a mention in this roundup? I\u2019d love to hear what you\u2019ve found in the comments!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Designing a logo is rarely as simple and straight-forward as it appears. The best logos add a bit of personality and style, and helps to reflect the identity of the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":164,"featured_media":26186,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[627,109,24,5695,225,4824,35,939,5633,107],"tags":[5907,4859,5891,2400,382,686,5887,2784,687,5911,419,1152],"yoast_head":"\nA Showcase of Intelligent Logos<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Designing a logo is rarely as simple and straight-forward as it appears. 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